*** Freedom Four Plaza ***
Not much happened after Clark helped the New Avengers stem the tie of escapee prisoners at the Raft. He still continued his patrol as Cobalt after hours. He hated to admit it but most of the big-time superheroes, like the Avengers, kept a daytime schedule. Being who he was, working a 9 to 5 job he could actually help out during the evening time. As expected a lot of petty crime happened at night but supervillains were far fewer in between.
'Guess even bad guys need to sleep,' Clark bemusedly thought to himself. As he sat at his workspace lost in thoughts.
"Are you done with the data yet Kent?" a harsh male voice sounded over his head.
Clark was startled and turned in surprise to see his supervisor, an old crotchety man named Smiths glaring at him.
"Ye-yes sir," Clark replied as he handed a folder over to him. Clark watched as the old man flipped through the pages and without so much as a thank you he 'harumph' and turned away, his prey a mousy-looking man that in the next station over.
"Don't let him get to you Clark," a smooth female voice sounded next to his ears, making the true Last Son of Krypton turn around quickly. Again.
"Mrs Richards!" Clark blinked at seeing Susan Storm down here and stood up in the presence of the heroine. He looked over at his workstation and felt sheepish about the mess. Lab equipment and papers were everywhere.
"It's okay, I've seen worse from Reed," Sue commented as if reading his thoughts with bemused eyes.
"Speaking of, Reed was very impressed with your calculation on the Negative Zone energy requirements, he said he couldn't have done it better himself and would like to meet you one day. Not only that, but he was more impressed with your prose and how you frame it. Most scientist writing, hand or otherwise is usually atrocious."
Clark smiled a bit as his journalist skilled impressing the man but swallowed as the last thing he wanted was to be on Reed Richards's radar!
"Are you here to"
"No," Sue Storm answered with a smile. "No, I decided to come down here and visit the 'grunts' as Johnny likes to call you guys."
Clark had to smile at that, he met Johnny both as Clark and Cobalt, the man was almost like Barry or Oliver in a way. Just an all-around fun guy to be around.
"Surely you didn't come down here among the grunts just to tell me that?"
Sue gave a small smile and shrugged her shoulders. Clark had to admit, the woman despite having two kids was still a knockout. Must have been the Gamma rays.
"Well, not quite, you see Reed is starting work on a NEW pet project, one that has to do with unstable molecules, and he suggested we draft a few talented individuals from the Farm to help speed up the process."
Clark was a bit surprised by the offer, however, he was never really scientifically minded like a lot of people here. When he was his old self, it was simply a means to become a Super-Hero, now that he got his powers back, it's just a day job. Much like his Daily Planet job, a cover so to speak.
"I-ah, appreciate the offer but can you tell Mr. Richar-"
"Just think it over," Sue cut in with a kind smile. "Just remember the people that worked directly with Reed are far and few in between, this is a chance that a lot of your colleagues here would kill for."
With that, the only female member of the Fantastic Four walked away from his desk. Clark looked around to see an envious glare from his fellow male co-workers. Glares directed at him. He could only give a halfhearted smile as he spread his arms out helplessly.
Looking down at his watch he noticed that it was close to twelve in the afternoon. He quickly logged out of his workstation and headed off to lunch.
*** Central Manhattan***
Clark bit into his sandwich and gazed at the city at went on with it's life. He was currently in his favorite diner, an out-of-the-way place if he was to be frank. New York here felt more like the Metropolis of his world and Gotham combined. It was such a striking dichotomy against the two moods of the city that he couldn't help but marvel at how it could co-exist so well.
"More coffee?"
Clark glanced up at the young waitress who was giving him a flirty look before he nodded affirmative.
"New watch I see, and a bit more fancy looking than the last one to boot."
"The last one broke, this one should be better," Clark replied as he gave a helpless look, to which the waitress giggled before going on to serve the other customer.
With a deep sigh, Clark lamented at not having the full resources of the Justice League, or in particular, full access to Bruce to help him figure out how he could explain his dual citizenship, New Krypton was not something he expected to have made such a large impact on the world, but then again back when he was Superman, he was one of the last, his cousin Kara being the only other Kryptonian in that world. And to think that in this world he was married to three women who love him so much, and one was Lois Lane.
After so many years of being weak and bullied, his body changed, and his powers returned, and even as his body changed. The amazing thing is that even with red solar energy on him, his body was still absorbing the yellow sun energies greedily. That accidental exposure to red solar energy while making his suit was a blessing in disguise. Clark imagined in a couple of years he would be back to what he was before he died back in his original Earths.
A sudden crack from the dishes startled Clark out of his thoughts as he saw his waitress looking at the TV in horror. A quick glance showed him that she was not the only one as the other patrons were looking at the TV in horror.
A moment later the television was turned on louder and Clark too felt sick to his stomach.
"-vengers are on the scene in what can only be described as a national tragedy in Stamford, Connecticut as the number of dead children are still being counted. The question to ask now was why would the New Warriors left unsupervised for so long and where would the next tragedy happen next?"
This made no sense, why would they do this, it felt like some group was manipulating information reported by or to the news, for their own goals, this was not something he liked, it almost reminded him of that lying AI named Brainiac. Something was going on, but he was certain that it was more than most people realized.
As he began to think of the possible things that could occur, Clark did not know why but his instinct told him that this had sparked something big, something that would have deep repercussions. besides Batman promised he would keep an eye on the new Warriors and properly trained them so this didn't make sense.
*** Night time, New York ***
There was a weird air in the city tonight and Clark felt it as he began his patrol as Cobalt. What happened in Stamford was horrible but it should not paint the rest of the superheroes in that same light. Yet it did on some level. This felt unnatural, almost like some malicious person or group had intended this to happen, to make people lose trust in superheroes.
In the distance, Clark could see Stark Tower lit up and many superheroes flying into the uppermost level with his enhanced vision. There seemed to be a very big discussion on what happened and he could understand why. It was one thing if the children had died if the New Warrior had actually been fighting Nitro seriously, but to do it all for a reality television series?
This would be far too unrealistic, something that was written almost like a stage play, even these heroes would know better than to do something like this, no matter how young they are, they would not have risked the lives of so many innocent people.
That made the regular people feel as if they were the playthings of the heroes, that civilians were simply the collateral damage while gods battled demons.
"Help!"
Clark's enhanced hearing picked up the plead and made a beeline for the distressed voice. Immediately he came upon a late-night shop being robbed at gunpoint by a low-level villain, the Trapper or something. He was a glue-type supervillain who had said glue gun aim at the store manager. Immediately, raised his hand and fired his heat vision. He was able to build a crystal webway in his suit that helped him funnel the heat vision energy into any part of his body that he wanted.
The glue gun of the Trapper was melted right away before he turned to look at Clark in horror. Dropping the bag of money he was holding he made to run for it but was stopped the moment he exited as a web line stuck onto his shirt and yanked him upward.
"Augh!" Trapper screamed at being pulled up so quickly.
"Seriously Trapper, you gonna go and do it now? What is everything going on? Not too bright are you?"
Spider-Man said in an exasperated tone before the villain was knocked out by his extended arm. Looking around the wall-crawler gave a thumbs up and began to web up the villain for the police as usual.
"And there you go, nice and neat for the police."
"Thank you Spider-Man! Thank you!" the owner of the store thanked the spider-hero profusely.
"All part of the job of your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man!" Spider-man gave a thumbs up to the shopkeeper but he could feel several hostile eyes on him.
"Spidey," Clark flew over but made sure to turn on his voice modulator as he easily kept pace with the famous hero.
"Hey! Big Blue, what ya doing here?" Spider-Man greeted, the tone in his voice felt stressed but genuinely happy to see him at the same time.
Clark has to smirk at how close to the mark Spider-Man had by calling him Big Blue still he was curious about what's going on with the Avengers and sought some insider information.
"You're not meeting with the Avengers? I saw a lot of them gathering at Stark Tower."
Spider-Man body tensed up for a bit before he continued on casually.
"Kept an eye out did ya? Can't blame you, not after what happened."
Clark and Spider-Man shared a moment of silence before he decided to ask for information.
"So any idea what's going on? You are a big-time Avenger last I checked while I am just a lowly street hero, any crumbs from your table?"
Spider-Man scoffed at the banter and Clark could feel the masked hero's eyes rolling. "Hey, you're the one that turned down Cap's invitation to join. Should have said yes, it's damn nice in Stark Tower, and Friday is the casual day!"
Clark had to roll his eyes, this was not the first time Spider-Man rebuked him for not joining the Avengers.
"Two mechanical suit heroes would just clash with one another," Clark rebutted in an amused tone.
"And it'd be tacky."
"What?! Are you trying to say something? Did you forget there are TWO, count them TWO Spider theme heroes in the Avengers?"
Spider-Man sounded indignant but there was no heat to it.
"Doesn't count, she's a woman, a very fine example of one judging from the suit she wears," Clark replied honestly. And it was true too, as a civilian, the girls' roster of the Avengers visited his fantasy MANY times.
"Hey hey hey! Colby! That's my work wife you're talking about there!" Spider-Man feigned outrage before the two shared a laugh.
The two patrolled for a bit more foiling three more robberies and two muggings before stopping on top of a building.
"Slow night," Clark observed as Spider-Man began to eat a hotdog and drink his soda.
"Yeah, Stamford is still on everyone's mind, criminals too I guess," Spider-Man replied through half-chewed bites.
"Yeah.."
The two shared a moment of peaceful silence before a beep went off, the sound originated from Spider-Man wrist. The masked heroes turned to look at Clark before he tapped it.
"Spidey here, got company here just to let you know."
That was code for don't spill any secret identities Clark deduced.
"Right, we need you back at Avengers Tower, Cap's he… look, just make your way here pronto." The voice of fame Tony Stark told the web warrior.
"Alright, on my way then."
"Tell Cobalt I said hi, Tony out."
"How did he-" Spider-Man looked at his wrist communicator in astonishment before he chuckled rudely. He stood up and stretched a bit looking toward the fame tower.
"Well, looks like it's just you in the street for now, I'll promise to come back soon to back you up."
"Sure, go back to your ivory tower while us plebs do all the grunt work," Clark good-naturedly ribbed his friend.
"Ugh! No appreciation I tell you!" Spider-Man quipped before he shot a web line and swung toward the direction of Stark Tower.
Clark watches his friend leave before moving his eyes up to Avengers Towers. There was a feeling of uneasiness in his gut and he didn't quite know why.
*** Freedom Four Plaza A Week Later ***
The atmosphere changed in the Baxter building. He didn't know what and would not be able to put his hand on it if he tried, but something big was going on. He saw Susan Storm and Reed Richards in what looked to be an argument. Same with Johnny and the Thing. Reed Richard himself had come down to grab people from the farm to be interviewed. No one was spared, not even him.
What do you think of the current way the Superhero does business?
Do you feel neglected when heroes battle?
Are you being properly talked to after a superhero battle? If so, by whom?
On and on those types of questions went, whatever it was his answers were not to Reed Richards's liking and thus he remained on the farm. Those who passed were taken by the famous hero to work on a secret project.
"Oh no," Mary Ann, Clark's co-worker and on-and-off fling, gasped as she checked her smartphone.
Clark took out his own smartphone and looked at the latest headline. A moment later his eyes widen in shock.
-CAPTAIN AMERICA WANTED FUGITIVE! CONGRESS PASSES SUPERHERO REGISTRATION ACT!-
Superheroes are now required to register themselves with their real identities or be placed under arrest. Captain America and those who support him are considered traitors if they do not sign on by 12 AM Eastern time.
"My god... Did Congress go insane, or do we need to worry that they are just people pretending to be them, not even they can be this stupid, that law violates more international laws as personal rights that he wanted to remember" Clark muttered as he realized just how bad this would get. The heroes were going to war against one another and he was certain. Having had his identity exposed he knew how bad it could get for close friends and family.
Clark read some more and found the names of superheroes who had already registered and some who were not afraid of having their real name exposed. It was one name in particular that shocked him.
Ms. Marvel- Carol Danvers
'Carol?! She was Ms. Marvel?!' Clark thought in amazement. For a moment he flashed back to their prom night before he shook his head.
On and on he read the list. Some were listed as registered but their identity was still secret Clark knew more than anyone that wherever that list was it could be compromised. He scanned some more but did not see anyone else he knew.
"Alright, folks, the word from Reed Richard is that the farm will be temporarily shut down in the meantime until the Superhero Registration Act is enforced and all dissidents round up. You will be paid of course, but don't expect it to take too long."
Dr. Smiths, the group leader announced. A moment later the remaining people of the Farm which was half of the staff looked at each other in bewilderment.
"What do you think will happen, Clark?" Mary Ann, the bombshell blonde asked as she walked side by side with him.
"Nothing good, Mary Ann, nothing good. If you think those three nations will be quiet about this, you couldn't be more wrong, even if we managed to prevent a hero civil war, New Krypton, Atlantis, and Themyscira, will declare war if this law is not removed. I am not kidding, New Krypton will not let this stand, not even if they have to use the full might of their military."
The two left together and arrived at Clark's home both eager to watch the news to see what would happen. Clark looked at the countdown on the news network for Superheroes to register or promises to register. Reed Richards was among them, as was Susan Storm-Richards. Johnny Storm, Bishop a mutant, and other mutants. Even Jean Grey, his old childhood friend was listed as registered.
As it got closer to Six PM, a message was sent to every news channel around the world, and almost like this is something they would use as a means to increase their ratings, they showed the message on every channel.
"Greetings people of Earth, I am General Dru Zod-El, and I am the representative of the ruling council of New Krypton, I have also been asked to speak on behalf of Atlantis by King Arthur and by Themyscira, and Queen Hippolyta. In light of the travesty that is the Super Hero Registration Act being passed by the US. Congress, it was felt that I must give a friendly warning to other nations that may wish to ratify this heinous act into law, I here tell you that we believe this act is a violation of both international law and violation of personal rights and freedoms, only a despot or tyrant would approve off, so we are giving the US. Congress and the world have two months to undo this mistake, failure to comply will result in all three nations that I spoke to declaring war. We shall protect our citizens, just as much as the other two nations I represent, and we are willing to use deadly force to do so, Do not take my words as jest, for they are not, you have been warned. May whatever god you worship be merciful to you for in war we shall show no such mercy."
Clark knew who this man was, he knew he was not kidding, and he had memories of the events in two other worlds, he could remember somehow that in a distant timeline, Atlantis and Themyscira fought a war against each other, even as they fought the world to a standstill while doing so, but a weaker malnourished, almost emaciated version of himself defeated both armies that could have defeated every military force on the world. This was not the case, the military power of these three nations was a thousand times more powerful and if they were to declare war, they would be united against a world that has no chance for victory and an even smaller chance to evade being wiped out.
Clark talked with Indigo and told her of his suspicions, that the entire events that lead to the passing of the Super Hero Registration Act were in fact something that felt artificially influenced like someone or some group wanted this law to be created to cripple heroes. Upon hearing what Clark said Indigo began to analyze everything she could access from both the internet, news channels, and any video footage she could find. She knew that Clark probably hoped that she told him that it was all in his imagination, but sadly this was not the case.
"Clark, your suspicions and hypothesis are sound, after doing my own analysis of information be it written, audio, or visual, I have come to my own conclusion, that as you suspect, there is a group that caused this act to be made, and furthermore, the very document presented where the law was written provides evidence of it, there is a subtle but hidden message written throughout the pages of the Super Hero Registration Act, when all parts are put together they spell a phrase, I found on historical records only, two words Hail HYDRA. To make matters worse, close inspection to a mark at the corner of each page, and under magnification, the emblem of the terrorist organization named HYDRA appears. Sorry Clark, but you are correct, this act was done by either HYDRA agents or people who support HYDRA to cripple the ability of heroes to stand in their way."
Clark asked if this was so easy to find, shouldn't it have been found by more people, be reported, and thus exposed as a vile plot by an evil organization, Indigo apologized by telling him HYDRA may be evil but they are far from being that obvious, it took her thousands of computational cycles to decypher it, much less realize that the mark is not a printing error or a printers mark as many no doubt suspect.
As he heard this, he asked Indigo to whom should he tell this, she began to be quiet for a few instances till she mentioned he needed to mention this to someone who was involved with enforcing the Super Hero Registration Act, even if the law gets taken down due to international pressure or due to prevent possible war, they would still need to know about this. If only to potentially investigate how HYDRA did this and possibly prevent more similar plots in the future, because she didn't doubt for a second that if this plot failed they had another to go back on, after all, take one and two shall take its place.
Clark could think of two people he could talk to, one was the man whom he worked for Reed Richards, and the other was a founding member of the Avengers Tony Stark, although he rather avoided Tony altogether since he didn't want to hear about him basically ripping off Tony and trying to copy his armor without even asking, not to mention he wanted to keep him as far away from Indigo as possible, much to Indigo's glee as she heard his thoughts. She could only think if she could blush she would, that was the sweetest sentiment anyone had ever expressed about her.
Clark decided to go buy some groceries and go home, only to hear Lois and Chloe complaining that their pantry was running short on some ingredients they really wanted, as luck would have it, Clark bought those and a few tasty things for them to enjoy, he could guess that they would not be in a particularly jolly mood after hearing what essentially is the beginning of World War Three, all because of that stupid law, enacted by a bunch of stupid senators, who were manipulated to easily by a group of people nobody should consider human at all.
As he walked towards the kitchen he smiled, "Don't worry, I heard you loud and clear and I bought everything you two wanted, and a few little things, I hope they make you happy. I gather you have heard the news that was on TV, and yes that is crazy, to make that law and for three nations to threaten world war if that law is not taken down. But sadly as much as I would like to say this was due to greedy senators, I can't, I found out something that I could tell you but it must remain secret."
Lois knew that this must be serious, and asked him what he had found out, well he told them everything that Indigo had found and he asked them to bring up the images of the documents, as he began to point to the places where the hidden message was on every single page, and finally, the dark dot in the corner, which they were shocked to see it was an image as he described.
"So that is why you didn't want us to tell anyone, so what do you plan to do?" Clark told them he planned to tell this to his boss, and since Reed Richards trusted him thanks to his work, it should be fairly easy for his boss to mention this to every person who was once in favor of that atrocity called the Superhero Registration Act, and make them see how wrong they were."
Suddenly hearing some noise in the master bedroom Lois, Chloe, and Clark could hear Mary Ann and Lana talking about her being added to Clark's harem that his wives are building and apparently Mary Ann liked the idea.